United States government Archives - Page 13 of 13 Voice For Liberty

Jun

Is Boeing tanker “victory” good for America?

A Wall Street Journal editorial from March 18, 2008 (Patriot Tanker Games) argued that calls on Capitol Hill for "patriotism" in defense procurement are misguided. Leaders of this call include Kansas's very own Todd Tiahrt and Pat Roberts. These politicians say that allowing an important American defense system to be built in partnership with a European firm is dangerous for America. In testimony to the defense appropriations subcommittee Rep. Tiahrt stated "I am outraged by this decision to outsource our national security ... We are stacking the deck against American manufacturers, at the expense of our national and economic security."…

Apr

By Bob Weeks

A Mess of John McCain’s Own Making

Kimberly A. Strassel of the Wall Street Journal explains a mess of John McCain's own making, and which confirms to me that he is not suited to be President of the United States: McCain's Campaign Finance Revelation. "The Arizonan may not yet fully understand that money is speech." writes Ms. Strassel. As Thomas Sowell recently said: "Senator John McCain could never convince me to vote for him. Only Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama can cause me to vote for McCain."

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Earmarks and pork thoroughly established

In a letter printed in the February 22, 2008 Wichita Eagle, Sedgwick County Commission Chairman Tom Winters, along with Wichita State University President Don Beggs, praised some Kansas congressmen for being "very effective Washington advocates for south-central Kansas." What the congressmen -- Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, and Kansas Sens. Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts -- did was to "roll up their sleeves and work on many issues that help improve our quality of life in the Wichita area." Sounds like a noble cause, doesn't it? What the three congressmen did was to secure federal funding for several projects deemed important…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

More Kansans for Ron Paul

By John Todd. The people know much better how to spend their money than the government. -- Ron Paul The economic prosperity and the freedom that people of this country enjoy today were a result of low taxes combined with little or no regulations dating back to the founding. People were free to use the fruits of their labor and their property as they wished, and through this freedom they created the most prosperous country in the world with the greatest amount of individual freedom. Today, Ron Paul is the only candidate for president who understands the dangers to our…

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Why I shall caucus for Ron Paul in Kansas

A common theme of the various candidates for the Republican Party nomination for the Presidency of the United States is Ronald Reagan. Candidates compete with each other to be the true heir of Reagan and his legacy. Ron Paul, however, looks back to an even earlier time in American politics when the word "conservative" had a different meaning. Most Republican candidates favor a muscular American foreign policy advocated by the neo-conservatives who advise our current president. This is a far cry from the foreign policy our nation once had. What do World War I, World War II, the Korean War,…

Jul

By Bob Weeks

Unlearning Roosevelt

Writing in the July 8, 2007 Washington Post, George Will has a column titled "Declaration of Dependence." The link to it is here, although you may have to register (for free) to read it. All through my public school education, we were taught that Franklin Roosevelt was godlike for saving the country from the Great Depression. While I don't directly know what schoolchildren are taught today, I imagine that the stature of Roosevelt has only increased, as his vision of large, overpowering government is in perfect alignment with the goals of public schools. This is more that I need to…

Apr

By Bob Weeks

President Bush’s tax hike

At the end of March 2007, President Bush raised taxes on Americans. How so? He did it by applying tariffs to imports of paper from China. The measure is supposed to help Americans, but all it does is hurt us. Donald J. Boudreaux's column Paper Chase from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review explains how this happens. A portion follows: The Bush administration recently raised Americans' taxes. If you missed this item in the news, it's because this tax hike isn't described forthrightly by government nor is it reported forthrightly by the media. The tax hike I'm talking about is the higher tariff…

Aug

By Bob Weeks

Reform the “other” welfare

Writing from Little Rock, Arkansas A recent USA Today editorial ("Hooked on Handouts" July 31, 2006) makes the case for reforming corporate welfare, given the success of "regular" welfare reform: Most of what the government does could be called welfare, using a very broad definition of the word. It's not hard to find individuals, corporations, states or communities hooked on one Washington handout or another. The result of this largesse is a society that is unproductively dependent on government support -- and politically organized to keep it coming. Agriculture is a leading example. Supports have become a sad hoax on…

May

By Bob Weeks

Rep. Todd Tiahrt and BTK

Congressman Todd Tiahrt has secured $1 million for use by the Wichita Police Department in the omnibus appropriations bill that goes before the House of Representatives on Monday. The bill has already passed the Senate, Tiahrt spokesman Chuck Knapp said, and approval by the House is expected to be a formality. While there are safeguards in place to make sure the money is used for certain purposes, Knapp said, "we're just not able to comment on the details of the funding." -- From "BTK 'clues' breed theories" in The Wichita Eagle, December 2, 2004. Here The Wichita Eagle reports that…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Missing From the Social Security Debate

This is what I haven't seen mentioned in the debate over the future of social security. Opponents of private accounts cite the risk inherent in investing in markets. Instead, they will rely on future generations of workers to pay the taxes necessary to pay promised social security benefits. It seems to me, though, that investments in U.S. securities markets, both stocks and bonds, derive their value from the underlying strength of the U.S. economy. If the economy does well, in the long run, markets do well. If the economy does not do well, the investments will not do well, and…